Butte semi-weekly miner. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1886-1890, 1887-02-05
THE CHARGE.

rrolJn~fnr h 4 tr,uslation Of paper con
e-shntea t0sfhAg nGw Ffunch magazine, La
TAttrss e les Ara, ~ Henry Hou.ays. Tn
iinrh that foruns III tart Il . vegse fitted BY
IA French solitary to ths bugle notes OF tha
| charge. and sT6ege ia drop to drink down
| there may b compared to the doggere!
lines sung to sundry Of the calls In the Uni5eo
| States army; thus the reveille:
Icant get him up. I can't get him up.
Icant get him up. this morning.
can't get him up, I can't get him up,
Icant get him up, at al.
While the summons Of tho drum to the doc
tors tent used to be thus construed, by such
"A were not candidates for medical treat
ment: u.,,,~
Come and get your quinine,
Come and get your quinine
And blue pills.
The song of the old grenadiers, that is
wrought into M. Houssaye's spirited account,
is a suggestion Of the drum beat, rhymed with
a promise to pierce the flank Of the enemy
and laugh over his defeat. c. N. 81
II y q 10 goutte . boire ?
La has. .
q la goutte q boire.
That is the hymn Of modern combat, tho
French pecan; it is the charge; %conquering
chant of the infantry. queen Of battle! That
trivial and ~ironical refrain has made the tour
Of the world before the bayonets 1t has
been heard in Algeria, the Crimea, in Italy,
China, Mexico, Tonquin, in France also, alas!
and at all times, wherever heard, has OK
pressed the resolve to win victory or die.
when. rapid and furious, it rings forth at tho
height of battle, it nerves the valiant and
emholdens the timid. It makes a hero OF the
last conscript and a Cinagirus OF that Skin
misher of the Alma, who, with his right arm
shattered by a bullet, seizes his trumpet In
his left hand and c~ontinus to sound the call.
During the charge it seems as If through tho
midst of powder clouds, passed, disheveled
and terrible, with eyes blazing and with lips
parted in huzzas, the goddess OF war, Bel
Iona.
The Spartans attacked to the sound of flutes
and to the singing Of Tyrt@an verses. The
Athenians charged the enemy with q peal Of
trumpets. shouts of Eleleu and Alle, and
with the hymn to Mars. The Roman legions,
as they pushed forward, cried, 'Rome! For
country!" then, a thousand times repeated,
aNearer!" to the fanfare of horns and trum
nets. The grenadiers Of the old guard
m6EC06Q 10 tQ0 NU6AC VI u LA 0SN AAAOO 0AXW
met the Russians and Prussians With the air.
On va leur percer le flame,
Ran, ran, ran, tan, plan. tire. lire
On va leur percer le flanc,
Que nous allons rirel
soldiers of the line, tho marines, the
assault with cries Of "Advancel" and in the
notes of the charge, vibrating from the
buQles and throbbing from the drums, the
soldiers hear the refrain:
Ia goutte a boire,
In has,
nya Ia goutte q boire.
At evening the army Of operation has CON
centrated. The position OF the enemy has
been re~connoitered by the cavalry; the gen.
erals, having completed the plan of attack,
have assigned the chiefs Of corps to their po-
sitions in the coming engagement. During
tue night many brigades bivouac under
protection of the grand guard, a short cannon
shot from the enemy. The other troops are
encamped a mile or two back, in closer prox-
unity to inhabited places. At the advance
posts some shots are drawn by the efforts of
sentinels to discover the position Of the enc.
nly's outposts.
At dawn the troops of the first line are
moved forward. The reserves are simultane-
ously set afoot, but they halt IN establish
their line out of bullet range, and fling of
their accoutrements within sight Of the artil-
lery. One regiment halts, forms along the
slope of a plateau, while a brigade of two
regiments ploys in double column and occu-
pies the bottom of the valley. The batteries
take position, one behind the crest, the other
a little lower down the slope, protected by
ridges of earth. Not a sound is heard, not a
cry only the rolling Of ~caissons m the CO.
denced step of columns of infantry.
Day breaks; the sun begins to mount the
sky, flinging its light, as yet devoid Of heat,
on plain, hillside and forest. Isolated reports
at several points seem to be onered as saIures
to the rising sun by pickets of the enemy.
One of our batteries opens fire, throwing a
couple of shells to estimate the distance. They
fall short, and to the left. The hausse is
raised, the aim rectified. Third pisce-fre!
time the projectile hit the mark at $500
Fix hausses! Ten shots are fired in +
rapid succession. Suddenly a white cloud
bursts from the summit of a hill. They are
a shell across to us. It falls and e1- /
plodes fifty metres in front Of our pieces. The /
of the defense has begun a fight
with the artillery of the attack. On both
new batteries enter into action. All the |
heights are crowned with smoke. An arti- l
lery duel is in progress, as yet more warm
than deadly.
In the plain the infantry is put in motion.
Leaving the woods, descending the slopes, de-
oouching from the defilcs. the troops advance
preceded by three echelons of the ad-
rance guard. The heads of columns are now
100 metres from position, and on open ground.
Nho oNnornv R,soc ma thu nIrvo~~~ ~..--I - 1
directs on the mass of troops several converg-
ng volleys. 1t is quickly seen that this solid
rider is too dangerous to preserve, and they
orm for the fight. Battalions break into
LIQUIDS of skirmishers, deploying first a quar-
er, then half, of their effective, while the |
companies are drawn without the dam
'erous zone, massed or deployed, kneeling or
ying down, sheltering themselves as they
nay behind ridges, and otherwise conforming
heir advance to that of the skirmish line. |
his line aims a blow at the enemy, first in
be form of scattered shots, then by a rapid
re from the whole line of skirmishers. In
be lateral positions the covered troops fire in
..ctions, at long range, on masses of the enemy {
nat now disclose themselves. At times the !
attlefield seems deserted. Puffs of smoke, :
merging from the heights, then dissolving !
mid clusters Of trees, and sometimes q flash, :
by the scream of a shell, alone in =
icate the presence of combatants.
The line pushes on, however. Skirmishers I
forward, fifty meters at a run, hating,
neeling, firing q few cartridges and resum-
g their course. The enemy opposes fire
it'll fire. He has brought nearly all his re-
rves into line to give greater density to bis Y
siIade. His artillery ceases to oppose our :
'tter1es and pounds away against our in
ntry. 1t is a perfect hail of lead and iron.
'ounded and dead fall to the earth. Re-en- g
and reserves are hurried forward u
the declmated ranks. Companies, battal-
entire regiments are broken. They are b
oow to elbow, and though balls and burst 7
8 shells incessantly make gaps in the line i